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BEVERLY, Mass. –On Thursday, February 28, 2019, the Endicott L.E.A.D. group (leaders of the Endicott Athletics Department) welcomed Rob Hale, CEO of Granite Telecommunications, to its monthly meeting to address the topic of succeeding through failure.

Hale, who addressed 60-plus student-athletes, discussed the importance of learning from one's failures in life. He also expressed how facing your failures, working hard, and being persistent will allow someone to become who they aim to be and achieve their dreams.

Hale used several stories from his own life to relate to the Endicott L.E.A.D. group.

Those stories included how he ran for president in high school and did not get elected for that role. However, as a junior at Connecticut College, he ran for president of his class, again, and achieved a different outcome. One of his other stories discussed how Hale made the men's lacrosse team at Connecticut College as a freshman, was cut from the team as a sophomore, but again, despite that failure, worked hard enough in the offseason to remake the team as a junior.

The Endicott L.E.A.D. group was created in the fall of 2015 as part of the College's mission to provide an educational experience that challenges our student-athletes to be prepared for life after graduation. The four core standards of the program are Commitment, Character, Effective Communication, and Confidence. Meanwhile, the definition of leadership for the program reads as follows: A process where an individual influences a community to achieve a common goal.

Hale exemplified all of the above to the Endicott L.E.A.D. group during the meeting. Here's what two student-athletes had to say about it.

WHAT OUR STUDENT-ATHLETES SAID ABOUT THE EVENT

"I thought the talk yesterday was really engaging because Mr. Hale did a fantastic job illustrating his message with anecdotes and stories that resonate with college students and collegiate athletes," said Keim, who will be pursuing her Ph.D. at Dartmouth College upon graduation. "My favorite takeaway from Mr. Hale's speech was the importance of not letting the fear of failure restrict your decision making. As a young adult about to leave the safety and predictability of college, it's easy to second-guess yourself and worry about making mistakes, but Mr. Hale's message proved how much you can learn from the experiences that don't go as planned, which makes it easier to embrace the uncertainty of the future."

"It was truly an honor to be able to listen to Mr. Hale speak. We heard about failures he encountered in the past, and it was inspiring to learn he never let his failures define him," said Rino. "Instead of defining us, our failures should drive us to be the person we aim to be. Leaders never ask others to do a task they wouldn't do themselves. Being a hard worker and an even better learner puts you in a position to achieve success in any aspect of life."

MORE ON ROB HALE, CO-FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT OF GRANITE TELECOMMUNICATIONS, LLC

Rob Hale is Co-founder and President of Granite Telecommunications, LLC, a communications company headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts. Founded in 2002, Granite now has annual revenues exceeding $1.5 billion and employs over 2,100 teammates. The company provides voice and data communications products and services to over two-thirds of Fortune 100, including 18 of the top 20 retailers in the United States. Granite was recognized in 2018 as the second most philanthropic company in Massachusetts after donating $25.6M to community organizations.

Rob has been recognized as a leading entrepreneur by several organizations and publications. He has been repeatedly recognized by Boston Business Journal– Power 50, which salutes the 50 most powerful people in Boston. He has also received the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year award and has been saluted as one of the 25 most influential people in American telecom multiple times.

Rob also owns FoxRock Properties, a Boston-based real estate firm with over 4 million square feet of commercial space. He also founded Copley Equity Partners, a private equity firm that invests in small and middle market businesses with significant growth prospects. Rob is an owner and Director of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association and the owner of the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse.

Rob was awarded the Boston Red Sox Jimmy Fund Award in 2014 for his long-time commitment to the lifesaving mission of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund. In 2017, Rob and his wife Karen were honored by the Breast Cancer Research Foundation with the Inaugural Carolyn Lynch Humanitarian Award. In 2018, the pair were honored by Brigham and Women's Hospital with the Heritage Key Award. Additionally, Partners Healthcare saluted the Hale's with the Jack Connors Philanthropic Leadership Award. For 2019, The Chronicle of Philanthropy listed the Hale's as one of the top 15 most generous Philanthropists in America.

Rob has held or holds leadership roles at Boston Children's Hospital, The Massachusetts Soldier's Legacy Fund, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Deerfield Academy, Connecticut College and Brigham & Women's Hospital where he currently co-chairs the $1.5B Life.Giving.Breakthroughs. Campaign. Mr. Hale lives in the Boston area with Karen and their three children.